The Dark Place: A Karl Kane Novel

Young homeless women and drug addicts are being abducted before being brutally mutilated and murdered, and a city is held in a grip of unspeakable terror. The cops are unable - or unwilling - to apprehend the elusive serial killer, and corrupt politicians turn a seemingly blind and almost approving eye to the catalogue of murders.

The perpetrator is cunning, wealthy and influential. More importantly he has never once made a mistake in his grisly calling - until now. By abducting Katie, the young daughter of legendary private investigator Karl Kane, the killer has just made his first mistake, which could well turn out to be his last.

“While it’s hard to come up with much new in a serial killer plot, Millar distinguishes himself from many of his contemporaries in the genre with taut writing and a memorable lead character in his latest Karl Kane novel, The Dark Place.” Publishers Weekly

“In the 1930s, Raymond Chandler created the quintessential hard-boiled private eye, Philip Marlowe, drawing on Depression-era hard times to set the dark, sometimes desperate tone. Over the years, much of that darkness has been lost in hard-boiled fiction, with latter-day Marlowes like Robert B. Parker’s Spenser spending as much time in the kitchen as walking the mean streets. Millar’s private eye prowls the alleys and lanes of Belfast, Northern Ireland, where the ambience returns the hard-boiled novel to its tonal roots. This is hard-edged crime with a vengeance, but it is handled with a finesse and deftness that Chandler devotees will admire greatly.” Booklist

“Sam Millar’s Karl Kane series is one of the high points in crime writing today. Millar can string words together like diamonds on a necklace and craft a hell of a good tale, but Kane, his protagonist, is what makes the series a gem. Totally addictive and brilliant.” James Thompson, international best-selling author, Snow Angels

‘Crime writer Millar's Karl Kane series has been compared to Marlowe, and it's easy to see why, once you're read this little gem. Go buy it. You’ll love it.’ Top Mystery, Book Reviews, USA

“Monstrous, and deliciously voluptuous, The Dark Place is one of the best surprises of the literary season.” Alain Leauthier, Marianne, France.

“Five stars.” Kurier Magazine, Austria

“Millar is possibly unique among crime writers, that I know of, and the real world that he experiences. He was in the Maze prison, on The Blanket, and then went to New York where he got involved in gambling and the underworld of the Irish mafia, there. He masterminded the extraordinary Brinks heist, netting millions of dollars. There is a ring of authenticity about the world he depicts and the tone he exudes, which is hard to knock, for very few of us can boast such a past. His writing is very, very dark, and reminds me a lot of Andrew Vachss and the Burke novels. The Dark Place is at the intense end of hard-boiled…a thrilling novel, very well structured, very powerful.” Declan Hughes, award-winning crime writer, RTE 1 Arena

Author of the Month Sam Millar Crime Squad
“Every now and then you stumble across a writer and when you are reading their latest offering you wonder how on earth you haven’t read their books before. I was instantly gripped when I opened the covers of The Dark Place. In only 256 pages, Millar manages to cram in enough tension compared to most novels that apparently need double the number of pages. In a few phrases this marvellous writer manages to flesh out his characters, bringing them very much to life. As with Ken Bruen, another Irish writer who is a master of less saying more, Millar is a wonderful find who should instantly be placed on top of discerning reader’s crime shortlist. You won’t go far wrong heeding my words.” Chris Simmons, Crime SquadCrimeSquad Rating - five stars

“With six novels already, and numerous awards for his fiction, Millar has established himself as a big player in the modern thriller scene. The Dark Place maintains the high standards set in the previous books.” Books Ireland